President Trump on Friday echoed a federal judge’s criticism of special counsel Robert Mueller’s prosecution of former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort, saying the judge validated Mr. Trump’s complaints about a “witch hunt.”
“I’ve been saying that for a long time — it’s a witch hunt,” Mr. Trump said at the annual National Rifle Association convention in Dallas.
Shortly after coming out on stage, the president began reading to the crowd a news story by CNN about a federal court hearing earlier Friday in the Manafort case. He quoted comments by District Judge T.S. Ellis, who told Mr. Mueller’s prosecutors, “You don’t really care about Mr. Manafort’s bank fraud.”
“How does bank fraud in 2005 or 2006 have anything to do with coordination with the Russian government?” Judge Ellis said. “What is really going on, it seems to me, is that this indictment is put pressure on Mr. Manafort, but in and of itself has noting to do with your [special counsel] appointment.”
The president noted that the judge asked prosecutors, “How does this have anything to do with the [Trump] campaign?”
Mr. Trump then told the crowd, “Let me tell you folks, we’re all fighting battles, but I love fighting these battles.”
The audience erupted with cheers and a lengthy standing ovation.
Reciting more positive economic news Friday, including a drop in the unemployment rate to an 18-year low of 3.9 percent, the president said, “and yet all we hear about is the phony Russia witch hunt.”
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